The 4 Best Remington 700 Trigger Upgrades – Aftermarket Reviews 2023

best aftermarket trigger for remington 700, best replacement trigger for remington 700

Photo by Wendy / CC BY

The Remington 700 is an excellent overall rifle and is used for hunting, target shooting and tactical use. The rifle, however, has a weak point—the trigger. The trigger has actually been the subject of a recall for being quite dangerous.

Luckily, installing an upgraded trigger in general is the perfect way to increase the weapon’s accuracy. An upgraded trigger on your Remington 700 is one of the most important methods to increasing its shootability and overall precision.

Below, we’ve scoured the marketplace and come up with the 4 best Remington 700 trigger upgrades. These should be just the ticket to your rifle needs. These can all be purchased from an online gun store like Brownells.

Remington 700 Calvin Elite Trigger

A gentleman named Calvin has been engineering triggers for Timney for quite some time. If you’ve ever used a Timney trigger, it was probably been engineered by Calvin. Calvin builds triggers to Timney’s specifications. However, the Calvin Elite trigger was Mr. Calvin’s opportunity to build a trigger to his preferred specifications. The Calvin Elite trigger is a single piece drop in model designed to replace your Remington 700’s trigger quick and easily. The Calvin Elite trigger pack is distinguished by its golden finish which is different from Timney’s standard black.

The Calvin Elite Trigger is designed with an adjustable trigger weight, but it’s extremely light. The setting starts at a mere eight ounces and only goes to 2.5 pounds. Even at its heaviest trigger setting the trigger is still superbly light. At ounces you have a trigger designed to hit small targets at long range with ease. At 8 ounces, you’ve need some time to train and practice shooting with such a light trigger weight. Once it’s safely mastered the Calvin elite is a brilliant trigger.

It’s a drop in, self contained trigger pack so it’s pretty easy to use and install. The trigger is extremely well made, much more durable than the standard stock Remington trigger. The important parts are Teflon nickel coated. The trigger is also fully adjustable for sear engagement and over travel as well. This is easily one of the best aftermarket triggers for Remington 700 rifles.

Timney Calvin Elite Remington 700 unbox / Remington Recall Rant

The Legendary Jewell HVR

The Jewell trigger system for the Remington 700 looks pretty typical of a standard drop-in trigger system. It is easy to install like a typical one piece trigger system. The Jewell trigger system has pull force adjustment, and over travel adjustment. However, this is where the comparisons end. The Jewell trigger is specifically designed to reduce friction and include mechanical advantage. This gives the trigger a lighter, smoother trigger that allows it to be extremely versatile.

The Jewell trigger is kind of an all in one trigger due to its dedication to versatility. The Jewell trigger system comes with three trigger springs. These three trigger springs are the heart of the system’s versatility. A trigger can only range so much in adjustability. You won’t find a trigger that is capable of adjusting from 8 ounces to 10 pounds. The three interchangeable springs in the Jewell system allows you set the trigger from 1.5 ounces to 48 ounces. To achieve this you’ll have to swap springs of course.

The Jewell trigger weight can alternate between being used for long range precision, tactical use, and of course hunting. The ability to change the trigger weight so severely makes this trigger system superbly unique. Jewell triggers are well made, and designed to last for decades—hands down, among the best Remington 700 trigger upgrades.

Jewell Trigger Installation: Remington 700

The Famous Timney Trigger

Timney is the classic drop-in trigger system for the Remington 700. It may not be the first alternative trigger system for the Remington 700, but it’s surely the most well known. Timney triggers have garnered a strong reputation. The Timney is also an excellent choice for those who are not familiar with taking weapon’s apart, or mechanically inclined. It’s simple drop-in nature, and detailed instructions make it easy to install. The system is actually easier to install in my opinion than an AR-15 trigger.

Timney’s actual trigger blade is much wider than the stock Remington 700 trigger. This wider trigger blade gives your finger more purchase and makes controlling the trigger easier as it’s pulled to the rear. A wider trigger also makes the weapon easier to use with gloves on, and since hunting is mostly done in the fall and winter this is an important consideration. The trigger is also very comfortable when being pulled, and has no serious issues in terms of general finger comfort.

The Timney trigger pull is adjustable, and can be adjusted from 1.5 pounds to 4 pounds. This weight is perfectly respectable, and is perfect for a wide variety of tasks. In my opinion this trigger is an excellent addition to any hunting rifle. The trigger is not so light to be dangerous in the field, but is preferable to the stock Remington 700 trigger. It should be on anyone’s list of the best Remington 700 trigger upgrades.

"Remington 700 Long Range build" Part 6: Timney 512 Trigger

 

The New Kid in the Game — Rifle Basix trigger

The Rifle Basix trigger is just that, basic, but that’s not a bad thing. The Rifle Basix trigger stresses simplicity and function. The Basix trigger is a drop-in trigger system that is a single piece install. The Basix trigger features an all aluminum housing, and a stainless steel trigger. The trigger is ribbed for increased grip, which again is extremely handy when wearing gloves. The Rifle Basix trigger is the same .330 of inch as a factory Remington trigger. If you enjoy the stock trigger, but want something a little better, then this model is for you.

The Rifle Basix trigger is CNC-machined and well made from a piece of aluminum billet. The coating is rust-resistant and corrosion-proof. The use of aluminum and precision CNC machining gives greater internal clearance. This clearance reduces drag and friction and provides a smoother felt pull. The Rifle Basix trigger is available in four weight ranges, which allows you to easily customize the trigger to the shooter.

The Rifle Basix trigger uses the standard Remington 700 safety. This is one of the features that helps reduce the cost of the Basix trigger. The Basix trigger is one of the more affordable options for replaceable triggers. For a little over a hundred dollars the Rifle Basix trigger is likely the best Remington 700 trigger upgrade for the money.

 

Triggered

The Remington 700 is a superb rifle, and is known as one of America’s most popular bolt action rifles. With that in mind it’s not a perfect rifle by any stretch of the imagination. The standard Remington 700 will certainly benefit from having an upgraded trigger. A lightened trigger pull, a lack of over travel, and an improved trigger width are all improvements over the standard Remington 700 trigger. Be careful, you start with the trigger and before you know it you’ll be upgrading everything.

  • Owner of Reloaderaddict.com, Boyd Smith is a major handgun enthusiast, and although he owns Glocks, he prefers the revolving wheel type. His go-to guns are a Smith & Wesson 642 Performance Center for carry and a Ruger GP100 in the nightstand biometric safe (he has kids). He loads both revolvers with old-school 148-grain Federal Gold Medal .38 wadcutters. It’s OK if you think he’s a wimp. Email him.

Share the Post and Images

6 responses

  1. Remember to check the serial numbers affected by the Model 700 recall. You may be entitled to a free replacement trigger from Remington.

  2. I’m just glad I was taught to keep all guns pointed in a safe direction, however this “no recall” trigger on my Rem 700 308 cal cost me hundreds of dollars to fix a camper floor and now I have to pay for a new trigger. Thankful no one got their foot blown off when I moved the safety which fired the gun (no finger in trigger guard area). Dangerous gun, and I will never buy another Remington.

    • Your fault. never trust a mechanical safety on any rifle – especially on a chambered round

  3. I own 9 700s. I bought them between 1974 and 2009. I have all game classes covered and all are scoped the same way, with look through mounts. They are for hunting….only.

    The safeties work differently and triggers cover Walker to XP. I want to replace them all because I just had one go off inside of a truck, down through the floorboard. I pushed the safety off to raise the bolt and it fired. Nothing touched the trigger when it happened.

    JCH is right. It is your fault if this happens…and Robert is right in that gun safety is better than luck. Who has a suggestion for replacement? Remington will replace 8 of them for nothing, but wants me to dismount and ship without the scopes. The time and trouble to remount and sight in outweigh the benefit of ‘new’ factory triggers. I appreciate your thoughts if you have them?

    • Too much “trouble” ? REALLY??? Much less time than a stop at any hospital. Try archery!

      Signed,
      NRA/CPL Instructor for 15 years. I trained only under US Army or NRA Instructors, no impatient bubbas.

      • Does anyone out there KNOW what Remington knew, and WHEN??

        Does anyone out there know this trigger designer guy “Walker”? We all know about “loose cannons”, but how about intentionally-designed loose components in a new trigger design made by an honored manufacturer. A huge shame, unbelievable.

        And, the inexpensive 380 semi-auto made by a small California company, which could not be fired at all. Another total screw-up. But quite safe!

Leave a Reply to Leonard Fashoway Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *